Frank Darabont Sues AMC Again in ‘Walking Dead’ Pay Dispute
By Gene Maddaus @GeneMaddaus

Frank Darabont doubled down Thursday on his claim that AMC cheated him out of millions of dollars in “Walking Dead” profits, filing a new lawsuit alleging that he is owed additional tens of millions of dollars.

Darabont has been warring with AMC for more than four years, as he and his agency CAA contend that AMC deprived them of $280 million by failing to engage in arm’s length transactions for distribution of the show.

In the new lawsuit, filed Thursday in New York Supreme Court, Darabont alleges that new information shows that he is entitled to tens of millions in additional compensation. Darabont’s attorneys contend that he is entitled to “most favored nation” treatment with respect to how his profit participation is calculated. But until recently, his lawyers were unaware that another producer on the show, Robert Kirkman, had a profit calculation based on AMC’s “actual” distribution fee, rather than an “imputed” fee used in Darabont’s case. Since Kirkman received a more generous agreement, Darabont alleges his contract is entitled to the same treatment.

This information came to light last fall, when Kirkman and other profit participants filed their own lawsuits against AMC, and attached Kirkman’s contract. Previously, Darabont’s attorneys alleged that AMC had withheld the relevant provision of that document.

Darabont and CAA are seeking at least $10 million in addition to the $280 million they are already claiming in the separate litigation.

Darabont created the hit show, which was based on Kirkman’s comic books, in 2010. He was fired as showrunner the following year. Though the conflict has broad implications for networks’ calculation profit participation, the dispute came to wider attention when Darabont’s rage-filled emails to his colleagues and crew were released last summer.

“Congratulations, you all accomplished what I thought was impossible,” he wrote in one representative missive. “You’ve turned me into a raging a–hole. Thanks a lot, you f—ers.”

Update: AMC’s attorney, Orin Snyder of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, issued the following statement:

“At the heart of this lawsuit — and all the litigation related to ‘The Walking Dead’ — is the greed of CAA. Their goal is every dollar for themselves, with total disregard for contracts, clients, fairness or even basic decency. AMC was the only network willing to take a risk on ‘The Walking Dead,’ after many others passed. AMC has been an honest steward of the series and has paid all of its creative partners handsomely and appropriately. This is just another opportunistic lawsuit orchestrated by the most powerful lawyers and Hollywood agents seeking an unjustified windfall and we are confident that it will be defeated in court.”

‘Walking Dead’ Names Angela Kang Showrunner, Scott Gimple Elevated to Chief Content Officer
By Joe Otterson @JoeOtterson

“The Walking Dead” is shaking things up behind the scenes.

Series showrunner Scott Gimple is being elevated to the newly created role of chief content officer, overseeing the entire “Walking Dead” television universe, including “The Walking Dead,” “Fear the Walking Dead,” and potential brand extensions on a variety of platforms. Angela Kang, who has been a writer on the show since 2011 and co-executive producer since 2013, is being promoted by Gimple to executive producer and showrunner of “The Walking Dead,” starting with Season 9.

In addition, AMC also announced that the show has officially been renewed for a ninth season, to debut in late 2018.

“This is an enormously important day for the entire ‘The Walking Dead’ television universe,” said Charlie Collier, president of AMC, Sundance TV, and AMC Studios. “We are proud to acknowledge Angela’s significant contribution to the series and to set a clear path forward for a ninth season under her direction. Further, with gratitude and admiration, we also recognize Scott’s broad impact on, and leadership of, the content that fuels our TWD universe. Together, we will dream bigger and more broadly than ever before. I know I speak for Angela, Scott and everyone at AMC when I say thanks most of all to the fans and the many talented people who have helped AMC play ‘Dead.’”

Gimple was “The Walking Dead’s” third showrunner after Frank Darabont and Glen Mazzara. He has been with the show since Season 2, signing on as a writer and producer and later supervising producer. He was promoted to executive producer and showrunner going into the show’s fourth season, taking over from Mazzara. During his time at the helm, Gimple has presided over the highest-rated episodes in the show’s history. He became an executive producer on “Fear the Walking Dead” when the show was renewed for its fourth season.

“‘The Walking Dead’ is a special show which started in an entirely different era of TV, and continues, in this new era, to confidently take chances to tell compelling stories that excite audiences and make them deeply connect with its characters, adapting Robert Kirkman’s brilliant comic book,” Gimple said. “As the show closes in on its tenth year, I’m honored to keep working with the talented, dedicated people behind and in front of the camera to make it all it can be, while expanding the world of ‘The Walking Dead’ with new narratives like ‘Fear the Walking Dead’ and a whole host of truly cool stories ahead. Angela is a big part of the heart and soul of ‘The Walking Dead,’ and I’m thrilled to help facilitate her vision of the show’s next era.”

Kang first joined the show as a story editor and later writer in Season 2, being upped to producer at the beginning of Season 3. She was promoted to co-executive producer at the outset of Season 5. Among the episodes of the show she has written is the Season 2 episode “Judge, Jury, Executioner,” the Season 4 episode “Still,” and the Season 7 episode “The Cell.” She also co-wrote the Season 4 finale with Gimple.

“I am beyond thrilled to be stepping into this new role with ‘The Walking Dead’” Kang said. “Working on this series and having the opportunity to adapt Robert Kirkman’s amazing comic has been a fangirl dream come true for me,” said Kang. “I’m excited to continue working with Scott and the wonderfully supportive folks at AMC, and can’t wait to share the next chapter of the story with our fans next fall.”

The move comes after “The Walking Dead” has seen significant declines in the ratings over Season 7 and 8, while still remaining the number one show on TV in adults 18-49. Fans have also been venting their frustrations with Gimple for some time, most notably for the decision to end Season 6 with a cliffhanger that teased the death of a major character.